Chicagoans take to City Hall on Free "Pussy Riot" Global Day

Amnesty International has declared today Free "Pussy Riot" Global Day. Protests in support of the feminist Russian art collective are taking place all over the world, Chicago included. As much as I'd like to take to the streets wearing my Vagina Monologues t-shirt over full-body neon spandex, I may end up spending the rest of the afternoon explaining to HR why I've made more than a dozen Google searches with the word "pussy" in it.

Chicagoans will rally outside City Hall (121 North La Salle St.) from 4:30 to 6:30pm in the wake of today's sentencing. Earlier today in Moscow, three members of Pussy Riot received two year sentences for "hoolaginism" related to an anti-Putin “Punk Rock Prayer” performed in a Russian Orthodox Church. This whole saga has been a Catch-22 for the Russian political establishment and has given Russia's Anti-Putin movement some momentum. International support of Pussy Riot has been resounding (Madonna, Anthony Kiedis, and Paul McCartney have all jumped on the bandwagon). Perhaps the biggest winner of all is American Apparel, whose neon liatards have never been more punk rock.

In a show of solidarity, protest organizers are asking protestors to wear balaclavas, the cloth headgear worn by the band members. I'm surprised that Occupy Chicago hasn't made any announcement to take part in the protest. Not even a tweet. Perhaps they're too busy planning their big protest at the Air and Water show this weekend.

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Meet The Blogger

Emile Dawisha

Since moving to Chicago in 2008, I've been a sports writer, dog walker, legal assistant, failed pescatarian, and - for the past three years - a fundraiser for non-profits. I've worked for non-profit agencies big and small - but all in the field of human services. After a one-year Americorps term at a daytime women's shelter (Sarah's Circle) and a 16-month stint at a west side family resource center (Carole Robertson Center for Learning), I took a grant writing job at Thresholds, Chicago's largest mental health service provider.
This blog is a melding of numerous passions of mine: local politics and advocacy issues, media, writing, self-promotion, and furthering some liberal agenda (or so my friends claim). Mostly, I just like to deliver a good scoop if I've got one.